1. Technical Field
This invention relates to the positioning and operation of audio and video devices. More particularly, the invention relates to methods and systems used for positioning, securing, orienting, and addressing the audio and video equipment used during a teleconference.
2. Description of the Prior Art
During a teleconference conducted between a local site and a remote site, it is often desirable to select for transmission to the remote site a video signal obtained from one among several video cameras positioned throughout the local teleconferencing site. Similarly, it is often desirable to obtain an audio signal from one among several microphones. This is especially true when there is more than one local video conferencing participant. In this case, the selection of the video and audio signals may be performed in a manner that simulates the shift in attention of an observer physically present at the local site. For example, the selected video signal may be obtained from a video camera offering a prominent view of the current speaker, and the selected audio signal may be obtained from a microphone offering the clearest rendering of the current dialogue. Providing video and audio signals to the remote participant in this manner offers more natural and comprehensive interaction with the local teleconferencing site. If performed correctly, the local video conferencing site and the local participants are seamlessly reconstructed at the remote teleconferencing site for viewing by the remote participant.
This goal motivates the use of a number of audio and video devices positioned at various locations throughout the local teleconferencing site. If traditional mounts such as tripods, are used to position and secure the devices, the resulting abundance of equipment is both aesthetically unpleasing and a significant impediment to the movement of participants within the teleconferencing site. More sophisticated grip equipment may allow the participants to move more freely around the site, but such equipment remains aesthetically undesirable—both for the local participants, and for the remote participants when the equipment lies within the field of view of one or more of the video cameras. Such equipment is frequently difficult to assemble and operate, and is often prohibitively expensive.
Furthermore, in many conferencing sites, each device is connected to a central audio and video controller with dedicated cabling. The extensive cabling accompanying such a setup is difficult to conceal and organize. This is particularly unfortunate if one considers that at any one time, the signal transmitted by a particular device is most likely not the selected signal, and is therefore not actually transmitted to the remote site. In this regard, a large portion of the troublesome cabling is unnecessary.
What is needed is a system that positions and secures audio and video equipment in a configuration that allows for effective capture of events occurring throughout the entirety of a teleconferencing site, yet that is neither aesthetically obtrusive nor physically cumbersome. Finally, the system should operate with a minimum amount of cabling, which is configured in a simple manner.